North East holidaymakers jetted off to Portugal on Thursday as the first overseas flight departed from Newcastle following the relaxation of international travel rules.
On May 17, the "stay in the UK" restriction was lifted by the Government as part of its roadmap out of lockdown, allowing people to travel abroad to green list countries.
And on Thursday morning, the first 'green list' flight took off from Newcastle International Airport.
The 6am TUI plane carried passengers to Faro, the gateway to the Algarve region.
Portugal was given green list status by the Government in early May, meaning passengers are now able to travel to the country without the need to quarantine on their return back to the UK.
Newcastle Airport will have up to 16 flights every week to Portugal throughout the summer months, with its airline partners reacting to strong passenger demand.
Multiple airlines will be operating flights to Faro in mainland Portugal. In addition, Jet2.com and Jet2holidays will have flights to the island of Madeira.
Leon McQuaid, head of aviation development at the airport, said: "Today marks an extremely important step in the recovery of the airport as well as the return of international leisure travel for the North East travelling public.
"It was fantastic to see excited passengers arriving at the airport this morning for the first flight to Portugal.
"I have no doubt they will have a fantastic time on their well-deserved holiday, where the temperature is 23C today."
Airlines operating flights to Faro from Newcastle include TUI from May 27, British Airways from May 29, Ryanair from June 4, Jet2.com and Jet2holidays from June 24 and easyJet from July 19.
Flights to Madeira will operate weekly from June 28 with Jet2.com and Jet2holidays.
